Email Etiquette Revisited

In today’s hectic work environment, email is a blessing and a curse. When used appropriately, it expedites and improves communication. When abused, email can harm business relationships, enable us to avoid responsibilities and commitments (“Hey, I never got that email!”), and otherwise adversely affect our ability to accomplish our primary tasks and goals.

My former Hilton colleagues may remember seeing this article of mine published as an addendum to Hilton Hotels Corporation's formal email policy.

10 points to keep in mind to practice email etiquette:

1. BE THOUGHTFUL: Don’t send unnecessary email; it makes more work for everyone.
2. BE CONSIDERATE: “Reply to All” should be used with careful consideration of the distribution. Do all parties really need to see your reply?
3. BE NICE: Email should not be sent in anger. Don’t write things in email that you would not dare say to someone’s face. Misunderstandings can fester via email. When things seem to be going badly, pick up the phone, or go see someone about it in person.
4. BE ETHICAL: Don’t send email merely to CYA or to dump tasks on unsuspecting recipients.
5. BE A LEADER: Avoid adding to long chains of email when a meeting is clearly required to obtain closure. Suck it up and suggest or arrange a meeting.
6. BE PERSONAL: Whenever possible, instead of sending an email, take a short walk to someone’s cube and have a real conversation. It builds relationships.
7. BE CLEAR & SPECIFIC: Start long emails with a statement of purpose and a straightforward request of the recipient(s); otherwise they may not read all the information, and you may not get your answer.
8. BE SMART: Never document and review human resource issues via email.
9. BE RESPONSIVE: Before discarding email, carefully review and consider whether it requires your response. If so, reply as quickly as possible. If your response was delayed, apologize.
10. BE PROFESSIONAL: Don’t put anything in email that you wouldn’t want to have indiscriminately forwarded to other people.

Email away!

Weak Ties - Strong Benefits

Back in 1973 a groundbreaking study about networking was published by Mark Granovetter in the American Journal of Sociology. The title was “The Strength of Weak Ties”. It introduced the now widely accepted theory that weak (or less direct) relationships in our personal network generate results more effectively than direct or strong ties. A broader network results in exposure to more diverse ideas and opportunities. Granovetter wrote another study in 1983, expounding on his original theory. If you are interested, I located his paper online at "The Strength of Weak Ties: A Network Theory Revisited". In my corporate days I was “too busy to spend time on networking”. Therefore, my network was very dense, in my case meaning that I knew few people outside my work environment. Most of us knew the same people and a lot of the same things in the narrow sphere of business in which we normally operated. Busy people like me didn’t spend time purposefully developing relationships with acquaintances or friends of friends. We had our noses to the grindstone, safely within our comfortable, dense little network. I didn’t see the issue at the time, but I do now. In today’s economic climate, if you need to find employment or want to improve or upgrade your current job, the people closest to you in your network are the least likely to be in a position to help. Your close friends often travel in the same circles, but a friend of a friend is privy to a whole different network of people and information. A whole new world can be opened up by expanding your list of contacts and communicating effectively with them. How do you expand your network into a “low-density” network? Cultivating a broader network takes effort and focus, and a spirit of giving. To begin with, get to know people that are connected to your job more tangentially than your co-workers, such as contractors, consultants, or vendors. Keep relationships alive that were born during cross-functional projects. Stay in touch with people you meet at conferences or in training classes. Connect meaningfully with people you meet in religious and/or community organizations. Search out others with passions and interests that overlap yours, and develop a connection. Get out and do new things. Be free with help and advice. Exchange phone numbers and email addresses. Make a phone call just to stay in touch. Drop someone a note or contact them online. A healthy network requires constant work. Reach out and expand your network through your weak ties. I guarantee you will realize benefits you never expected.

When It's Time To Go

We are all creatures of habit, to one degree or another. There is comfort in routine and stress in change. At work and in our private lives, we plan to minimize risk and maximize results. We purchase insurance, drive defensively, strive to achieve our goals at work, and carefully chart out our career moves. But what happens when plans don’t pan out? How do you know when it’s time to make a change? When is it time to go? Have you ever been really miserable at work? Perhaps you have unsuccessfully tried to analyze criticism received from a boss, been purposefully excluded from power strongholds, shoved into a virtual corner in an insignificant and boring position, or suffered through the process of selective layoffs. At the best of times, office politics can be brutal. During tough times, it’s a struggle to survive financially and emotionally. There are some bad situations that can’t be fixed and shouldn’t be tolerated. Sometimes you have to do more than complain about work and move on to find a better fit - a work situation where you can be successful and appreciated. The more of these indicators you are experiencing, the more likely it is that you should consider looking for a new job: · You are chronically bored. · You have been assigned a job that doesn’t keep you busy enough and/or isolates you from working as part of a team. · Your boss never has a word of encouragement for you, but has plenty of criticism to share. · You can’t see how what you do contributes anything of value to the company. · Your responsibilities bring you no pleasure or sense of accomplishment. · The goals or actions of management conflict with your personal beliefs or morals. · Your performance is being measured against unreasonable goals that are impossible to achieve. · Your efforts are exhausting you and causing stress that is affecting your health or other aspects of your personal life. If any of these things are happening to you, talk frankly with your supervisor to assess whether anything can be done to change the situation. You may want to explore an internal transfer to a new job and a new team. But if it’s clear you don’t have a future with your current employer, take your career firmly into your own hands. Prepare a professional resume, aggressively establish active professional and personal networks, and start the hunt for a new position.

Prove It or Lose It

The Chicago Cubs lead off hitter, Alphonse Soriano, was pushed down in the batting order recently, due to poor performance. He hit a miserable .173 over the last 36 games, and his lackadasical defense had me seriously convinced that hitters were strategically aiming in his direction. Last week, we saw a newcomer fresh from AAA play in Soriano's place, and he played his heart out with great results. Thus the change in Soriano's status. There is a parallel to this in business. A professional has to keep working at being an outstanding contributor to a company's goals, or they can be moved into a less significant role in the organization, or even lose their position. Retention of a good job is not an entitlement. You don't reach a certain level in an organization and become safe for the rest of your career. You have to keep performing, keep proving that you have it to stay even, let alone to progress. What you did a few years ago is history. Companies rightly have a "What have you done for me lately?" attitude. Although this seems obvious, some ignored this imperative during financial good times. Now, when companies are tightening their belts and eliminating unproductive positions, people are scurrying around trying to prove their value. Maybe this is a reality people need to experience once in their career to get the message. It's not the first time it has happened (I experienced in myself in the recession of the early 80's), and it won't be the last. What should you do to improve your chances of retaining your job in turbulent times?

• Understand your company's goals and exactly how your responsibilities relate to them.
• Make sure you have clear performance goals against which your performance can be measured in an objective way.
• Keep in close communication with your manager, so you know exactly what is expected of you.
• Always exhibit a positive, "can do" attitude, and volunteer to do whatever is needed.
• Keep growing your skills and experience, even if you have to do it on your own time.

Failure to do these things will make you vulnerable in your position. If you aren't willing to do what it takes to contribute value to your company, some young up-and-comer (or a cunning veteran) will take your place before you know it. Stay hungry, work smart, and be successful.